Everything You Need To Know About Peloton Bikes

With a stationary bike, fitness is easier than ever before. You don't need to go to a gym or studio to experience the benefits of exercising and cycling. It is also more convenient to work out at home on an indoor cycle bike, especially if you have a limited amount of time because of your busy work schedule or trying to fit in a workout around your kids' schedule. An indoor stationary bike is crucial for people working on weight loss or weight management, building endurance and speed, cardiovascular health, and toning and strengthening your body. The Peloton bike is ideal for people looking for high-energy workout sessions, whether they are a beginner rider or an avid cyclist. With a Peloton bike and the accompanying subscription, you have access to the camaraderie and competition of a studio cycling class without having to leave your home. You also get to enjoy all of the features of a high-end exercise bike.

Size 

The Peloton bike's footprint, or measurement, is 4' x 2' of floor space, so you can easily find space for it in your living room or basement. This indoor cycling bike is sleek and extremely durable with a bike frame of 125 pounds of powder-coated carbon steel so that it can withstand the pressure of you cycling on it for countless hours. Even though these bikes are more expensive, they are designed to accommodate a wide range of rider sizes from 4'11" to 6'5" and weighing up to 300 pounds so multiple users can use the fitness bike with ease. 

Handlebars And Saddle 

The handlebars have a superior grip, so your hands don't slide even when they're drenched in sweat, and are tightened securely, so they don't wobble when you're hanging on to them, pedaling for dear life. Another nice feature of the handles is they have a secondary adjustment that rotates out of the way once the bolts are secure. The saddle is also reasonably comfortable, unlike many stationary bike seats. You can also adjust the seat's height and depth to be more comfortable, no matter your height or body shape.

Pedal Clips 

It can be tricky to pedal without your feet slipping and sliding off with a regular spin bike. With a Peloton cycle bike, you have pedal clips to hold your special Peloton cycling shoes or other bike shoes in place. That way, you can pedal away to your heart's content and not worry about your feet sliding off the pedals and slowing you down or injuring yourself.

Superb Flywheel And Pedals 

Anyone who has ever cycled can tell you that having a quality flywheel is essential to a smooth cycling ride. It's the giant round disc at the front of an exercise bike. As you pedal, the flywheel stores rotational energy, and it makes the bike run smoothly. The flywheel is connected to the pedals through a chain or belt, which causes rotation of the flywheel as you pedal. The flywheel's weight determines the resistance and inertia of a cycling bike so that you will have an uncomfortable ride and potential injuries without it. If the flywheel is too light on some bikes, it can cause the bike to be jerky as you pedal and be relatively noisy.

However, with a Peloton bike, the flywheel and pedals turn very smoothly and are practically silent, so you don't have to worry about waking up anyone while you're cycling at five in the morning or disturbing the neighbors in the apartment below. The flywheel has a highly variable and sensitive magnetic resistance that you can adjust by one percentage point at a time, so you can easily find the perfect amount of resistance to challenge you in your ride.

Auto-Follow Resistance

One of the new features on the Peloton Bike+ is the optional auto-follow resistance. With this feature, Peloton riders can select to have the indoor bike automatically adjust the resistance during a spin class based on the instructor's recommendation. You can choose to have the cycle bike automatically adjust your resistance to the higher end of the class's range or the lower end of the class's resistance range, depending on your preference. This helps you immerse yourself more fully in the classes since you're not focusing on continually adjusting the resistance knob.

Sound System 

While the original bike had back-facing speakers, making it harder to hear the speakers at times since they were facing away from you, the new Peloton bike, the Bike+, has front-facing speakers. It also has a higher wattage capacity, which lends itself to clearer sound quality and a more immersive experience. Another upgrade with the newer Peloton bikes is the headphone jack's location, which is now conveniently placed in front of the handlebars for easy access. You have the option of listening to the classes through the speakers or with wired or Bluetooth headphones. There is also a new privacy cover for the camera, so you can choose whether or not you want fellow riders viewing you while you're cycling.     

Tablet/Touchscreen 

The Peloton bike is WiFi compatible and has a 22-inch touchscreen or tablet mounted on the bike's front. The tablet can also swivel side to side and reach various angles and heights so that you can see the screen from the bike or the floor for any floor classes. The touch-sensitive tablet is also sweatproof, which is crucial for a work out screen on your bike. The tablet's streaming is good, so you don't have to worry about it lagging or buffering in the middle of class. While riding, you can view various stats like how long you've been riding and how much longer till your end time, speed, distance, how many revolutions per minute based on how fast you're pedaling, resistance intensity, and how many calories you've burned. With crisp and responsive streaming, the tablet displays various metrics as you cycle. You can also see the "output," or how much energy you're exerting, determining your place on the leaderboard and how you rank compared to the other riders. The leaderboard is one reason Peloton is so popular since it unleashes riders' competitive nature and gives them a sense of community through the virtual studio classes.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Many people struggle to get the motivation to work out when it's just up to them, and no one else is involved. With Peloton's live classes, you benefit from people there as a support system, and you can see your progress compared to other riders. This can help motivate you to push past your previous goals and work harder during your actual workout as you try to beat your fellow teammates' scores.  

Instructors and Classes 

While many people begin using a Peloton bike for the exercise benefits of having an indoor stationary bike, they stay for the classes. Most people that get an exercise bike may only use it for a few months and then get bored or burned out, with their bike collecting dust in the basement, but that's not the case with Peloton bikes.       

The Peloton bike has the best of both worlds. You have the luxury of working out from the comfort of your own home and live classes, so you don't have to feel isolated cycling on your own. In addition to the high-quality bike, the biggest attraction that draws countless riders to the Peloton bike is the unlimited exercise classes and community sense. There are up to fourteen Peloton classes streamed live every day. If for some reason, the live class times don't work with your crazy schedule, there are over 5,000 classes you can view on demand. The classes have a wide range of intensity, style, length, and music playlists that Peloton users can freely access. The courses vary in length from 30 minutes to 90 minutes to fit your time constraints. However, the thing that makes these classes one of a kind is the unique instructors. The Peloton instructor performs in the New York City studio, and you can see them and fellow riders at the studio. Peloton prides itself on fun and motivating instructors who bring their unique style to a class and have you begging for more. There are several different kinds of Peloton bike classes you can filter through depending on your mood and desired work out results, including:

• Beginner: Beginner classes are perfect for easing into a workout routine because they are low-impact and cater to all skill levels.
• Genre: The instructors create genre-specific playlists from anything to hip hip to classic rock, so you'll be sure to find something to fit your tastes.
• Artist Series: With the artist series, you can ride to playlists from your favorite contemporary artists specifically designed to get you pumped.
• Live DJ: Top DJs partner with a Peloton instructor to give the class a club-like feel, with modern beats and current playlists.
• Low Impact: With low impact classes that are easy on your knees and joints, you can get your heart pumping regardless of your skill level.
• Climb: These intense classes are ideal for building strength, with a climbing ride that recreates the feeling of tackling a hill, combined with increasing resistance as you ride.
• Power Zone: You can gradually increase your endurance, speed, and strength as the instructor guides you through flat roads to your destination peak.
• Tabata Ride: These intense and sweat-inducing rides give you a 2:1 ratio of effort to recovery time, which pumps you with power, determination, and the energy needed to meet your goals.
• Intervals & Arms: Build up arm strength and endurance as you switch between periods of free weights and recovery. 
• Signature Series: You'll never know what you'll get with these classes because it is up to the instructor! Based on each trainer's personality, you'll experience different training styles and a variety of music preferences. 

The quirky and passionate instructors become like mini-celebrities in the Peloton world. People look forward to having a class session with the instructors they love and will sometimes even perform two or three classes in a day, just to have more time cycling with their favorite instructor. 

The Peloton App 

At the bottom of the Peloton class on screen, you'll see your stats. If you're taking the course in live-time, then you'll see your output and class rank in real-time. If you're taking an on-demand Peloton class, you'll still see your live stats on the board, but they'll be compared to other riders who have taken the class in the past to give you the illusion of a live leaderboard. With several hundred people routinely streaming a class simultaneously, and that number occasionally creeping to over a thousand participants for special events, you'll never feel alone as you experience the luxury and sense of community that is offered with Peloton rides.

For only $39 per month for the Peloton All Access Membership, you have access to the Peloton app and thousands of digital classes, creating an immersive and versatile work out routine that you'll never get bored with. Each member of your household can create their personalized profile on the same account, saving their favorite classes for a total home gym experience. You can pause or cancel your Peloton membership at any time, although very few people ever cancel. With a 95% subscriber retention rate, it's not hard to see that they must be doing something right.  

With the Peloton app, you can quickly sort through the countless classes being offered, schedule workout reminders, and even track your workout history. With the Peloton fitness app, you can access courses for bodyweight strength, boot camp and resistance band training, dance cardio, barre, strength training, yoga, pilates, and more. So, you're not only getting an indoor cycling bike and cyclist classes, but full-body workouts as well included in the price package.